Xueqi Lyu

Xueqi Lyu(b.1999,China) is currently studying printmaking at the Royal College of Art. Graduated from Zhongnan University of Economics and Law in China, majoring in taxation. Xueqi enjoys the peace brought by her creations, which is also the reason why she picked up her childhood hobbies and studied again after graduating from college.

Xueqi likes to inject subtle emotions into her works, whether it's the emotions brought to her by something or her exploration of inner emotions. Xueqi's works often carry a satirical emotion, as she incorporates her own insights or criticisms of the world into them, describing the world in her eyes.

"Everyone's mind is a well, and the size of the world you can see depends on how wide your well is."

When Xueqi Lyu heard these words in a conversation with a friend, she was impressed by the thought of these words. Xueqi started to explore the limitations of the human mind and connected it with visual representation. Her work is inspired by what people see through their windows. It is a visual experience with a sense of limitation and distance, where the viewer is in a different space from the scene in view, and the window is the medium that connects them. From a philosophical point of view, Xueqi views the perception of human thought separately from the world's reality, visualising them as the window and the view of the outside world. The artist tries to use her understanding to present the limits of human vision and how strange the world can be in people's view.

The artist has used a combination of materials to recreate as realistically as possible the experience of looking out of a window. Her work consists of wood frames in the shape of windows and acrylic plates.The images are produced by UV printing. The tree outside the window is a very common thing, but even common items can be presented very differently. The artist chose angles of the tree that would not normally be seen through windows and placed two views from completely different angles on the same wall. The exaggerated angles and visual limitations are intuitively presented in her works.

Limitation – The work limitation consists of two UV print works. The artist uses photography combined with digital drawing to complete the image, which is rendered on acrylic plates. The wooden frames in the shape of windows block the audience's view to a certain extent, making the work look like two windows on a wall.But the view of two windows are totally different.

The Tree – Outside the window is a tall tree. People are as standing under the tree looking upwards. The bar on the window in the shape of an 'error' blocks the view of the window.

Tree Reflection – A lake is close to the window. Audience is so close to the lake that the reflection of a tree rests in the water. The world outside the window is bizarre.

Medium:

UV print

Size:

1600mm*800mm

Butterfly – This print work made by Hard ground etching and aquatint.Introverts suffer from being afraid to look others in the eye, but this behaviour is seen as rude or insincere. The moment my eyes are forced to look directly into the other person's eyes, my nervousness flies out of my brain like a butterfly.

Jellyfish – When introverts force themselves to engage with others, they are like a jellyfish leaving the ocean and being hung up in a tree. It is not the tree's fault, nor is it the jellyfish's fault, but the jellyfish will die a painful death.

Babysbreath – In a beautiful bouquet of tulips, a babysbreath quietly blends in. It completes the look of the bouquet, but it is rare to be someone's first choice.

The Moon – This is a mezzotint print work. When I deal with my emotions, I usually imagine that I am a person sitting on the moon, that I am lonely but calm, and that the things that happen to me are like shooting stars slipping around me, but they don't land on me. That way I don't get hurt by these emotions.

One Moment – This is a mezzoting print work. When I had to speak in front of a lot of people, my emotions reached an unprecedented level of tension and my heart started beating violently. Part of me was anxious, part of me was trying to stay calm, and part of me had fallen into a deep sleep.

Medium:

Etching

Size:

200mm*400mm

etching introverted self-healing

Me – In my memory someone once commented that I was like a person in a trap, that I lived in a space that I could not let others in or let myself out.